TWO thirds of overweight women said they have felt like "life is not worth living", a survey found today.

More than one in ten said they felt that way frequently, a National Slimming Survey found.

Only one per cent of overweight women are happy with their shape and they blame celebrity culture and pressure from the government to be slimmer for causing greater victimisation.

More than three quarters - 83 per cent - said they suffered from deep "self-loathing" and "utter despair" and 91 per cent felt depressed.

The survey also found three quarters admitted to hiding food in their bedroom, car, garage or garden and nearly half cut the size labels out of their clothes.

Of the 4,000 women questioned, 91 per cent said "big can never be beautiful" while 55 per cent said their sex life was "dire or non-existent".

The survey - which also questioned 1,000 overweight men - found 94 per cent of overweight people felt "like second class citizens" and 71 per cent said they had been "pilloried and poked fun at".

Problem

Body shapes which overweight people coveted most were Catherine Zeta-Jones for women and Brad Pitt for men. Comedian Peter Kay was voted "most attractive larger man", fending off Robbie Coltrane and Eamonn Holmes.

Dawn French was considered "most attractive larger lady", ahead of Fern Britten and Caroline Quentin.

Caryl Richards, managing director of Slimming World, said: "There has never been a worse time to have a weight problem. Overweight people receive a constant barrage of criticism and abuse and have never been more persecuted.

"No other group of people would be allowed to be publicly humiliated in this way and this survey shows how deeply distressed they are."

Nearly all those surveyed said that "society discriminates against overweight people" and 81 per cent said they were viewed as less intelligent. Even their own family members make "negative comments" to 69 per cent of people.

Three quarter admitted to being "snackaholics" and 92 per cent said they had never been given any proper dieting guidance by their GP.

The majority of women said that being overweight had an adverse effect on their life. Two thirds said it spoilt their "whole life", 57 per cent said it wrecked family life and stopped them from joining in their children's activities and 83 per cent said their sex lives would be better if they were slimmer.